Numerous devices have been developed over the years to imitate the sounds of wild animals, particularly game animals. Many efforts have been attempted to simplify and improve the quality of the sounds produced by game calls. Many game calls, particularly elk and turkey calls, require extensive practice before they are mastered. Some users simply cannot master the calls even after hours of practice.
Several problems have recently surfaced with respect to the effectiveness of traditional game calls. Due to the increased popularity of hunting and the perceived effectiveness of using game calls, more hunters are taking the field each year using a plethora of different types of game calls. Accordingly, game animals are becoming increasingly discriminating and wary of many traditional calls. Unless the call is capable of imitating with a high degree of precision actual sounds of the game animal, it will likely be ineffective. Many calls on the market today fail to replicate with enough precision the actual sounds made by the game animal and thus serve primarily to frustrate the hunter. These game calls serve more to alert the animals of a potentially dangerous situation than to call game into close range.
One type of a well known prior game call is a reed-type diaphragm call that is inserted completely into the caller's mouth when used. Although good quality tones can be produced by these types of mouth calls, they likewise are some of the most difficult calls to master. Accordingly, many efforts have been made by call designers and manufacturers to attach a reed or diaphragm material to a structure mounted on a tube or otherwise develop a hand-held call with the idea of making the call easier to use. While such calls have indeed proven easier to use, such calls typically produce inferior quality sounds. Therefore, with respect to hand-held calls, high quality sounds have been traditionally sacrificed in favor of ease of use.
Other traditional problems with respect to hand-held game calls relate to placement of the diaphragm member on the game call itself. Traditional calls have required random stretching of a membrane over some type of aperture with a fastener, such as an elastic band, securing the membrane in position. The tension of the membrane is therefore adjusted to a different degree each time the latex is placed over the mouthpiece, according to the user of the call. As the tension of the membrane changes, so too does the tone produced by the call. Constant, reliable results in terms of tone are difficult to achieve. The call user must traditionally make several attempts at adjusting the membrane to achieve the tension that results in the best possible tone. While the call is being used, the membrane is commonly displaced which likewise varies the tone.
Still other problems have surfaced with respect to exterior mounted diaphragms for hand-held calls. In calling elk, for example, it is desirable to imitate the low, raspy, guttural sound of a bull elk as well as the higher "music" tones. For most traditional hand-held elk calls, the raspy sound of a bull elk is extremely difficult to imitate. Accordingly, there is a need to provide a hand-held elk call that enables the user to produce a low tone raspy sounding of a rutting bull elk.
Yet another problem associated with traditional hand-held elk calls is the need to simulate the resonance associated with the bugle of a bull elk. Corrugated tubing has long been used as a device to simulate the resonance of a bull elk's bugle. However, such corrugated tubing falls short of the actual sound an elk makes. Various efforts have been made to attach devices to the end of corrugated tubing to simulate the desired resonance. None of these devices, however, has completely solved the difficulty of precision in simulating the resonance of a bull elk's bugle.
Still another problem with respect to traditional hand-held game calls is their lack of versatility. Typically, there is only one manner in which the game call can be used effectively. Also, the components required to use the call must typically remain constant. The make up of most traditional elk calls limits the device from being used in combination with other devices and methods of calling animals, particularly elk.
In view of the foregoing problems, there is a need to develop a game call system that is highly versatile, capable of being used in combination with a plurality of different game calls and methods. There is likewise a need to develop a game call that can be modified to create various different calls from a single modular game call system. In addition, there is a need to produce a game call that includes a diaphragm member that is preadjusted, more versatile to use, and predictably attachable to the game call such that a known, reliable sound can be produced. There is still further a need to produce a game call that imitates the raspy, guttural sound as well as the natural resonance of a bugling bull elk. In addition, there is a need to produce a game call that is easy for a beginner to use, yet allows an advanced caller to imitate with a high degree of precision the sounds of various game animals.